Mobile Apple Me

Section: iPod + iTunes, iPod touch, iPhone, iPhone, iPhone SDK & Apps, Originals

Halloween might be upon you, but you’re grown up now. So instead of getting the candy, you’ll be giving it out with a big smile on your face, right? Yeah, probably not. Those darn kids just want candy. They don’t give a crap about you, and they certainly don’t care how much you spent on candy, or how much (little) effort you put into spooking up your place. So, just for you, I’ve rounded up a few free apps to help put a smile on that face.

• NASA app for iPhone - The “first-ever NASA application for the iPhone.” With it you can get updates on all the NASA missions. It has those great space images that we all love so much, and some videos too. Free for all, though free-er for those who don’t pay US taxes.
• WordPress 2 - At least 1 better than WordPress, the original app for iPhone, maybe even 2. The interface is said to be more efficient, and there are a ton of other improvements. If you have a WordPress blog, this is pretty much a no brainer must download app.
• Eric Snider’s Solitaire: Klondike LITE - 3 deal Klondike solitaire is without a doubt the only reason Windows XP is the OS of choice in the business world, so why not help rid yourself of the last possible reason to keep Windows around by downloading a free solitaire app? The graphics are nice, and it’s free. Nobody doesn’t like Sara Lee solitaire.
• Walgreens - That’s right, as if there wasn’t already a Walgreens within a mile of where you currently are, it’s coming to your iPhone too. You can order your prescription refills and your photo prints, upload images, browse products, and even locate that Walgreens a couple of blocks down the road.
• Wings Free: Flight Simulator - Timed demos are lame, but Wings is one of my favorite leisurely flight simulators. It has one level that allows you to fly like you’re in a dream over a landscape. It uses the accellerometers on the iPhone to control your flight, and there’s really no skill needed. It is free, but it’s timed, so after a short while you’ll have to tell this flight simulator to flight see-u-lator.
• TomTom car kit tool - You probably don’t have a TomTom car kit yet, but perhaps soon.  And if you do plan on investing in one, this app will allow you to disable the pop-up message it causes on your iPhone. It will also display the GPS signal strength, software version of the cradle, hardware version and serial number.
• Heavy Crossbow - I’m not sure how long this one is going to last, so grab it while it’s free. I love the premise. “The helicopter crashed in the jungle, you were the only survivor.”  So naturally, you have to kill any and everything that moves, with a crossbow. Now give me a Wookie rwaaaaAaAaAaaAwrrRrr!

Full Story » | Written by Jake Gaecke for Appletell. | Comment on this Article »

Section: Software + Apps, Miscellaneous, Third-Party, iPod + iTunes, iPod touch, iPod Accessories, Cases, iPhone, iPhone Accessories, iPhone, iPhone SDK & Apps, Mac + Computers, Software

Macintosh and iPhone/iPod updates and announcements for October 30, 2009:

Macintosh

• ZiggySoft has announced iWeb Valet 2.3.0, the tool to enhance and upload iWeb pages. iWeb Valet widgets give you the power to add new interactive widgets to your web pages. It is both easy to use and incredibly powerful, adding many features to iWeb sites and you don’t have to know anything about programming or web-authoring languages such as HTML or Javascript. Version 2.3.0 includes the ability to have unique meta tags on all pages, a new Falling Snow Effect widget, and more.
• Crunchyroll and Boxee have announced a partnership to provide Anime and Asian drama fans an even easier and convenient way to watch their favorite shows anytime they want from their living room couch. With the largest online collection of legal Anime and Asian entertainment, Crunchyroll has quickly grown to become a fan favorite website with over five million unique registered users. Using Boxee’s free downloadable software, fans will have an even easier way to stream all their favorite anime, k-dramas and more from the Internet onto their televisions. The best part is that Boxee provides users the ability to navigate Crunchyroll’s videos with a simple remote control from the comfort of their couch or bed. Additional bonuses include the ability for fans to share what they are watching with friends and social networks.
• The Mac Sale has announced their latest bundle, containing 10 great Mac apps, interviews with the developers and even a song! The Mac Sale should again provide a great deal for customers and importantly, a fair deal for developers. The apps in this bundle are HoudahGeo, MacJournal, CrossOver Games, Picturesque, Morph Age Regular, Searchlight, Vinoteka, iMaginator, Opacity Express and Stor.
• Anawiki Games has announced the immediate availability of Spooky Runes, the Halloween twist of their bestselling game for Mac OSX. Spooky Runes is a puzzle-driven game offering a polished, addictive game-play. Spooky Runes features exceptional music and superb effects that remain this games hallmark. Avalon invaded by ghosts, ghouls, bats and scary cats is fun and spooky. Spooky Runes takes you to an enchanting world of magic and mystery you won’t want to leave.
• KennettNet Software has announced Clarus 1.5, an update to their pet management solution for Mac OS X, now with a companion iPhone app. Perfect for maintaining insurance and medical records, vet bills, and expense receipts, Clarus was specifically designed to manage a pet’s life and paperwork, all in one convenient, easy-to-use utility. And if Spot just happens to go missing, printing a bold missing poster that includes his photo and basic details with reward only takes seconds.

iPhone/iPod

• IK Multimedia has announced the release of two new applications for the iPhone/iPod touch: GrooveMaker Electro and Drum ’n’ Bass (D’n’B). These complete the range of available GrooveMaker applications with two new style-based apps that allow anyone to create and share non-stop Electro and D’n’B tracks for DJing, remixing, multimedia and movie soundtrack compositions on the go, in real-time, just like a professional DJ or music producer.
• Scholastic Media has the answer for fans of The 39 Clues this month with a limited time promotion for its latest iPhone app - The 39 Clues Madrigal Maze. On November 3rd, in conjunction with the new release of Book #6 of the New York Times bestselling series, the company will offer the iPhone app for just $1.99 on iTunes through November 17th.
• Corduroy Enterprises has announced Portfolio - Local and International Stocks 1.0, their new iPhone app that greatly simplifies the task of tracking a portfolio of stocks. Portfolio takes the clutter and complexity out of stock tracking, and focuses on the information you really need - the total and change in your portfolio’s value. For everyone from professionals to mum & dad investors, Portfolio is an easy to use, uncluttered tool to track their share portfolio and watchlist.
• Pocket Oinko is a virtual pet living inside your iPhone or iPod touch. Instead of having to take care of him like all other virtual pets, Oinko has a mind of his own. You can suggest actions, but ultimately he’ll decide what to do. You can either obsessively stalk him and observe his daily routine, or help him out and receive bonus points in return. Use these to buy food and toys for Oinko to play with.
• BigSprocket, LLC has announced Tourneys 1.1, an update to their popular poker tool for the iPhone and iPod Touch. Designed for the Internet poker player, Tourneys puts the schedules of upcoming tournaments from the most popular Internet poker sites in the palm of your hand. It allows players to quickly find out what games are coming up on each site, without having to log into that site’s software.
• Rapid Turtle Games has announced Mr. Puzzle Genius, a brain challenging and addictive 3D puzzle game. For each level, front, side and top 2D views are given for the goal 3x3x3 cube. The player needs to create a 3D 3x3x3 cube with the basic building pieces; cube and prism in that way to create front, side and top views as in the goal 2D views. Mr. Puzzle Genius comes with 3 difficulty levels ranging from Novice to Expert each with 20 puzzles.
• Marware has announced the SportShell Convertible carrying solution for the iPod touch 2G is now shipping. The SportShell Convertible for iPod touch 2G is 3 cases in 1 and merges versatility with elegant, cross-functional design in a single product. It offers a polycarbonate shell with a smooth rubberized finish. By using interchangeable parts, the SportShell Convertible offers a full range of carrying options.
• LifeFocus Apps has announced LifeFocus 1.2, an update to their popular tasks and goals utility for iPhone and iPod touch. Designed specifically to take advantage of the iPhone’s unique capabilities, LifeFocus gets the information users need quickly so they can focus on getting things done. Whether users desire a basic task list or prescribe to the Getting Things Done methodology, LifeFocus can be personalized to meet any need.
• Ofijo has announced Halloween Mayhem 1.0, their new pumpkin saving Halloween game for iPhone and iPod touch. Halloween Mayhem is a small but very funny and addictive game in which your goal is to crush as many skeletons as you can before they reach the Halloween Pumpkin. Something has awaken and now it’s after your beloved pumpkin! You cannot let anything happen to it!

Full Story » | Written by Kirk Hiner for Appletell. | Comment on this Article »

Section: iPod + iTunes, iPod touch, iPhone, iPhone, iPhone SDK & Apps, Reviews

I sometimes worry I’m too easy of a reviewer; that I dish out fours and fives by default, remember only the good parts of games, glossing over the rough edges, and just generally giving designers the benefit of the doubt.

Then I run into games like Pitz and Pang, now out for the iPhone and iPod touch. It’s not that they’re bad games, it’s just that the controls are so wonky—for both of them— that I feel like I’m fighting with the interface rather than the game itself.

I have to go on record as saying that I’m not a big fan of tilt controls for games, nor do I like virtual buttons for analog buttons. I think they lack the sensitivity needed for gaming, by which I mean, I stink at using them. The fact that both Pitz and Pang use virtual buttons in games were precision is vital to success probably didn’t help them any.

Pitz

Category: Jumping game
Developer: Etherfield Ltd
Requirements: iPhone 3.1 software
Compatibility: iPhone and iPod touch
File Size: 14.5 Mb
Version Reviewed: 1.01
Price: $2.99

In Pitz, you control a ball that’s trying to bounce its way through different layers of jungle terror, collecting coins and artifacts on the way, and avoiding spikes. You control the ball by pressing on the left and right side of the screen. The physics of the game take a lot—a lot—of getting used to, which was the big problem I had, because you’re not just in control of which way the ball bounces (it maintains the same amount of “bounce” every time it lands), you can also alter its direction in mid-bounce to a degree.

Unfortunately this means you have to spend a long time training yourself in learning how to steer the ball, something I was never able to grasp as I constantly fell down into spikes and missed jumps that sent me back to the beginning of the level. You can’t rest your thumbs at all or it will inevitably cause the ball to shift slightly, and even at its earliest levels this is a game that requires hair-splitting precision to make even the simplest jump happen. Maybe there are people out there with better thumb control, but it made me feel like I was attempting open heart surgery with my feet.

Pang Mobile

Category: Arcade shooter
Developer: Player X
Requirements: iPhone 2.1 software
Compatibility: iPhone and iPod touch
File Size: 7.0 Mb
Version Reviewed: 1.0.0
Price: $2.99

Another game that suffers from controller problems, Pang features a character who looks like Ash Ketchum’s older, unattractive brother, Zeppo Ketchum, in a nonstop war with bouncing balls. You do this by firing harpoons and other weapons in to the air, striking a balloon so it breaks into two smaller pieces, which don’t bounce as high. You continue this process until the smallest pieces are destroyed.

The game is described as “easy to learn but difficult to master” and brother, they weren’t kidding, but that’s not because of the subtle challenges of gameplay, but because the way you move Zeppo across the screen is frustrating as best. Using your right finger to fire (by tapping), you move left and right by swiping your left finger along a strip at the bottom of the screen. While the game options allow you to increase the movement sensitivity of the controls, doing that simply makes you run into the balls faster.

I’m not talking about the challenges of an arcade shooter—which Pang very clearly is, basing itself off Buster Brothers from back in the day—I’m talking about the level of fine control needed as several small targets are boucing at your head and you need to dodge quickly from one side to the other. If your finger strays out of the control area, you’re hosed, which pretty much ruins a game of precise timing like this one.

Maybe it’s me. Maybe I’m too old and atrophied to have the hand-eye coordination to play these games any more. Hell, Defender was too complicated for me. But as much as I like my iPod touch, and as much as I enjoy playing games on it—strategy games which don’t require twitch controls—I’ve yet to see a game that makes good use of virtual buttons on the iPhone software.

Full Story » | Written by Bill Stiteler for Appletell. | Comment on this Article »

Section: Software + Apps, Miscellaneous, Third-Party, iPod + iTunes, iPod touch, iPhone, iPhone, iPhone SDK & Apps, Mac + Computers, Software

Macintosh and iPhone/iPod updates and announcements for October 29, 2009:

Macintosh

• Redcort Software has announced Virtual TimeClock ‘09 Release 3, their industry leading time and attendance software for Apple Macintosh and Microsoft Windows computers. Virtual TimeClock is available in both Pro and Network Editions. The new Virtual TimeClock software release brings the ability to add notes to employee timecards, full Snow Leopard and Windows 7 compatibility, and more than two dozen software enhancements.
• St. Clair Software has announced the release of Default Folder X 4.3.2. Default Folder X enhances the file dialogs in all Mac OS X applications. It provides fast navigation to your files, convenient previews, integrated Spotlight tagging, and more. Version 4.3.2 addresses issues with Mac OS 10.6 Snow Leopard, as well as enhancing Default Folder X’s ability to see which folders you’ve used recently.
• Acapela Group and AssistiveWare have announced the release of Infovox iVox 2.0. Infovox iVox 2.0 offers Snow Leopard compatibility, significantly improves performance and responsiveness and adds a number of new voices for the following languages: Arabic, French, German, Flemish, Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese and Turkish. These voices work with virtually any Speech Manager compliant Mac OS X application, including VoiceOver, Preview, TextEdit, VisioVoice and ConvenienceWare GhostReader.
• Eternal Storms Software has announced the immediate availability of flickery 1.6. flickery is a unique desktop flickr client for Mac OS X 10.5 which combines the flickr photo-community with the ease-of-use and elegance of Mac OS X. Easily upload photos and videos to your Flickr photostream, organize items in photosets and groups, browse Favorites, and more. flickery 1.6 features trimming options for videos, batch-editing of items and the use of CoreLocation on Mac OS X 10.6.
• TidBITS Publishing Inc. has just released the free Take Control of VMware Fusion 3,” by Joe Kissell. The 142-page ebook, sponsored by VMware Inc., provides real-world advice on the best ways to install, configure, run, and maintain Windows on a Mac with the new virtualization software VMware Fusion 3. Customers may download the ebook for free or order a print copy for $12.99.
• MacUpdate has introduced MacUpdate Desktop 5, a powerful application that enables users to keep all their Mac software up-to-date with unparalleled ease and accuracy. MacUpdate Desktop brings the convenience of automatic software updates to every Application, Widget, Screen Saver, and Preference Pane. Designed from the ground up to take advantage of the newest Mac OS X technologies, MacUpdate Desktop is a class-leading solution packed with features.

iPhone/iPod

• I-play, Oberon Media’s publishing division and the world’s leading multi-platform casual games publisher, today launched Bubble Town 2 for iPhone and iPod touch. Based on the wildly successful online arcade game that has captivated millions of players through Facebook, MySpace, PC download and mobile, the highly-anticipated Bubble Town sequel for iPhone is now available in the Apple App Store.
• Stone Design has released Twittelator Pro 3.3.1, a free upgrade to its top-selling iPhone Twitter client for iPhone and iPod touch. Twittelator Pro packs the most features into a Twitter client, mobile or desktop. Version 3.3.1 includes many new features as well as embraces new Twitter features in October. Twittelator Pro was recently featured at the top of the Summer’s Hottest iPhone Apps in an Apple/AT&T full page ad in the Wall Street Journal, New York Times and USA Today.
• Off-by-One Mobile has released AutoTrafego 1.1.1, a free special Halloween Edition of their isometric traffic management game for iPhone and iPod touch. This Halloween Edition takes place in a specially crafted scary graveyard while still offering the same quality of professional artwork and polished effects as the original game. An original spooky soundtrack ensures that the immersion is complete.
• Galarina has released PhotoToMac 1.2 for iPhone and iPod Touch. PhotoToMac transfers photos taken with an iPhone and saved photos over WiFi to a Mac shared folder. The photos are transferred in full resolution and multiple photos can be transferred in batch. PhotoToMac requires no cables, no internet connection, no browser and no emails. The only requirement is that the iPhone or iPod Touch is on the same WiFi network as the Mac.
• iLuv has announced the availability of the iMM183 Hi-Fi Dual Dock Alarm Clock with NOA/S.A.M.E Weather Hazard Alert, a CES 2009 Best of Innovations Honoree, to iPhone 3GS, iPhone 3G and iPod fans. The digital dual alarm clock brings rich sound combined with dual dock options and a Weather Band Radio with NOAA emergency alert system to your bedside for $149.99 MSRP.
• Super Happy Fun Fun and Play Mechanix have announced the release of Big Buck Hunter Pro for the iPhone and iPod touch. Available just in time for whitetail hunting season, Big Buck Hunter Pro is the latest way to play the phenomenally popular 3D arcade hunting experience anytime, anywhere. Millions of players already flock to the 10,000+ Big Buck Hunter arcade units nationwide each week, and the iPhone platform will enable long-time franchise fans and new players to experience the world’s #1 arcade hunting game on the touch screen for the very first time.
• Scosche Industries has announced the availability of its powerFUZE line of home and car USB charging systems. The powerFUZE Pro is the signature model and is both “Made for iPod” and “Works with iPhone” certified, and allows users to carry just one charger for all their USB based devices when traveling.
• ooPixel has released a new iPhone game called Samegame Gravitized. It’s available on App store for $0.99 during the first week or two. The price will go up to $1.99 afterwards. In Samegame Gravitized the goal is to remove groups of blocks of the same colour. The more you remove, the more points you will gain, just like in all Samegame or Match three variations.
• PlayHaven today launched its innovative platform enabling virtually any iPhone game developer to instantly establish a community presence online and in-game for free. For the first time, developers can now easily claim their game communities to start directly communicating with their fans, while creating word-of-mouth buzz with iPhone gamers everywhere. PlayHaven’s online universe of communities has an aggregated audience across more than 15,000 games in the iPhone App Store.

Full Story » | Written by Kirk Hiner for Appletell. | Comment on this Article »